Article Irish Examiner

Here is a link to an article that recently appeared in the Irish Examiner.  Dan MacCarthy came for a holiday in May 2009, stayed here in the Hotel Les Templiers, and spent 5 days walking in various places around Luz, Barèges and Gavarnie.   His article for the Irish Examiner is attached below.

Irish_Examiner_Dan_MacCarthy.pdf

Skiing Winter 2009-10

Forecasters are divided on the outlook for this winter.  There is a weak El Nino developing in the Pacific which may make winter slightly warmer than average.  I don’t think anyone should hope for a repeat of the masses of snow that fell last year, but there is no reason we shouldn’t be able to have a great time skiing this winter.

All the ski stations around have confirmed their ticket prices for Winter 2009-10.  They are as follows:

 

Luz Ardiden: 28€ or 22€ if you stay with a listed accommodation supplier (i.e., Hotel Les Templiers!).

Gavarnie-Gedre: 23€ or 20€ if you stay with us.

Barèges-Tourmalet: 32€ or 41€ including Pic du Midi.  No possibility to buy from us unfortunately.

 

If you want to ski for a week solid and are staying in Luz a good option is to take the “Puissance 3” pass which gives 6 days access to either Tourmalet or Luz Ardiden and one ride up to Pic du Midi.  It is 180€ for adults (30€ per day) and 150€ (25€ per day) for under 18s.  Families of 4 or more are all 150€ per person.

 

We are offering bed and breakfast (27€/33€ pp twin share low/high season) or half board (42€/47€pp twin share low/high season) accommodation in the hotel as usual.  High season prices are for Xmas/NY until the 3rd Jan and from the 13th Feb to the 8th March along with Friday and Saturday nights, unless you are staying more than two nights with the weekend included.

It is possible to access both Luz Ardiden and Gavarnie with the shuttle bus services.  Barèges is possible but less direct because you take the SNCF bus up to Barèges and then the shuttle to the station.  The times are good in the morning but not so convenient in the afternoon - a taxi down is often an easy option.  Hire cars are available from Lourdes train station and all airports.  If you hire a car ask for chains with it, just in case.

 

For the moment temperatures have dropped but we are still enjoying some gorgeous autumn weather.  So we've got a while before winter really hits us.  Hopefully we'll see you when it does.

 

Note: The top picture shows the pine trees around Barèges and the bottom is looking towards the Pic du Viscos from the top of Luz Ardiden.

 

 

Up the Tourmalet on a Brompton

A friend of a friend recently came to stay and carried his Brompton bike with him from London.  His stated aim was to ride up the Col du Tourmalet.  Not really knowing what a Brompton bike actually was, and not having seen the bike when he arrived we thought nothing of this.  When the morning came and he was kitted out in his serious cycling gear we watched intrigued as the bike was unfolded. 

The first picture is the Luz Ardiden "hill" and the second shows the man, and his bike, as he sets off on a cloudy day at the end of September, up the famous Col du Tourmalet.  The camera batteries ran out so there is no picture from the top.

All we can say is well done, but that this has probably contributed to the myth in France that Englishmen really are crazy...

Heures de bus Lourdes-Luz-Barèges/Bus timetable

The SNCF website can be a bit difficult to navigate so here is the bus timetable between Lourdes, Luz and Barèges.

BUSES HEADING UP INTO THE MOUNTAINS
Buses heading from Lourdes to Luz St Sauveur and Barèges during July and August.  The trip will take 55 mins and you need to change buses at Pierrefitte-Nestalas.
LOURDES (train station) 8:10, 9:40, 14:25, 16:10, 18:15, 19:20
Friday only 20:35.

Buses heading from Luz St Sauveur up to Barèges during July and August.  It only takes 10 mins.
LUZ ST SAUVEUR (outside tourist office) 9:05, 10:35, 15:20, 17:05, 19:10, 20:10
Friday only 21:25.

BUSES HEADING DOWN TO LOURDES
Buses heading from Barèges and Luz down to Lourdes during July and August.  The trip takes 55 mins and goes via Pierrefitte (where you need to change buses) then St Savin, Lau-Balagnas, Argeles-Gazost, Ayzac, Agos and the Pont de Lugagnan.

LUZ ST SAUVEUR (Tourist Office) 6:20 (not Sunday), 7:30, 9:50, 12:50, 15:50, 17:30 (Sunday and public holidays), 19:30

BAREGES (outside cinema) 15 minutes before Luz.

Happy travelling all.

Pyrenean Grange + Apartments for Rent

Available for rent this summer is a mountain ‘grange’ above Barèges at Midaou.  We went for a look last week and if you want to get away from it all then this is the place for you.  In the middle of the high summer pastures facing south this is a real Heidi experience.  With no-one around, looking at the amazing views in all directions and surrounded by fields of flowers you risk forgeting that the real world exists.  The grange is for rent on a weekly basis for 500€.  The grange is accessible by a dirt track but if you don’t wish to take your car up the owners will drive your supplies up at the start of the week and bring them down at the end.  Barèges is a 15-20 minute walk down a relatively steep path so this is not for the faint hearted but there are a good selection of walks from the grange itself so you may not even come down the entire week.  If you are tempted contact us directly at [e-mail] for more information. 

 

 

 

 

 

Also available are two two bedroom apartments and a studio just next to the hotel in Les Remparts.  The studio apartment is available the following weeks:

11-18 July
22-29 August
29 August - 5 September

There are two bedroom apartments available for the following dates:

18-25 July
25 July - 1st August
1 - 8 August
26 Sept - 3rd October

Two bedroom apartments in the centre of Luz opposite the fortified church for 550€ per week.